The Bosch PMF 10.8 Li is the latest edition to the Bosch Multi tool family which is aimed at the DIY user.
I'm a great fan of the Bosch PMF 180E and this tool is the cordless equivalent which means it is much more mobile and can be taken almost anywhere. The downside to it being cordless is that you can not use it for large jobs, but if you needed to do a large job you would use the corded version.
The tool itself is very light weight and can easily be used with one hand when cutting certain materials. The tool blade change system is the same as the PMF 180E in that the blades or sanding attachment can be changed on the machine using the supplied Allen key (Hex key)
With the correct blade attached the PMF 10,8 Li is one of the most versatile saws on the market and can cut wood, plasterboard, metal or ceramics in areas where other saws cannot.
It's great to see that Bosch have made a carry case that is slightly oversized so that you can easily put a few more useful tools in the carry case, there is also a useful section in the lid for storing the instruction manual.
The whole tool in the carry case is surprisingly light and can be transported easily. The case for the PMF 180 E was too small and it meant that you could not fit the machine back into the case with the blade attached, with the PMF 10,8 Li you can easily fit the machine with blade or sanding attachment attached!
The Bosch PMF 10,8 Li comes with the following as standard-
- Bosch 10,8 Li machine Li-ion battery
- Battery charger
- 1 Plunge saw blade
- 1 segmented saw blade
- Delta sanding attachment
- several various sanding sheets
Changing the blade on the Bosch PMF 10,8 Li is relatively easy, remove the battery so that it is not accidentally switched on and then unscrew the socket head bolt, using the Allen key wrench provided. The blades have mounting lugs, once these are engaged you can fasten the blade to the machine by tightening the socket head bolt.
The PMF 10,8 Li has a variable speed selector switch, so that you can control the oscillations (5000 - 20,000) depending on what task you are undertaking. It also has a battery indicator which is green when fully charged and stays green as long as the charge is >70% when the indicator turns continuous yellow it means that the battery capacity is between 30%-70% when the indicator is red the capacity is <30%
The charger is light weight and compact but it does seem to take about an hour to fully recharge the battery, so if you intend using this machine for long jobs you either need to purchase another battery or buy the Bosch professional model which comes with two batteries.
The Bosch PMF 10,8 Li can be used in places where it would be impossible to reach with any other kind of saw. Here it is being used to trim off laminate flooring which has been fitted without an expansion gap.
You can swap the blade over for the sanding attachment and use the machine as a detail sander. Dust extraction is also a possibility if you purchase the dust extraction attachment, although you can only use this when sanding and not when cutting.
The machine is powered by a tiny 10.8 volt Lithium Ion battery which means that it can be part charged without damaging the battery!
The Bosch PMF 180 10,8 Li will certainly be a welcomed addition to most DIYer's tool collection. The fact that it can be used anywhere without having to source a power supply makes it very versatile. The case improvements that have been made by Bosch are most welcome and being able to store a tape measure and a few other small tools in the case makes it a huge improvement on the PMF 180E (which did not fit in the case with the tool attached to the machine)
The only drawbacks with this machine are the fact that it only has one battery. The machine also proved to be unreliable and broke after very little use.
